Mizzou gymnastics standout Kennedy Griffin earns SEC weekly honors
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Just days after becoming the seventh person to achieve perfection this NCAA gymnastics season, Mizzou standout Kennedy Griffin has earned some well-deserved Southeastern Conference weekly honors.
The SEC announced that Griffin is the conference Specialist of the Week, following her perfect 10.000 on the floor during Friday's Zou to the Lou Quad meet. She is just the fourth gymnast to capture perfection on the floor this season on her team's way to their best floor score of the year.
It's the first time that the Ohio native has ever scored a 10.000 in her career. Griffin is also now the second-youngest gymnast to achieve that score this season and in program history.
Griffin's standout performance on Friday is the second time a Mizzou gymnast has earned a 10.000 on the floor, joining her teammate Jocelyn Moore, who achieved the feat in 2024. In program history, Griffin is the sixth Tiger gymnast to score a 10.000, five of which have come since the 2023 campaign.
Although the perfect score was new for Griffin, an SEC weekly honor was not. It is the second time in her career that she's been recognized by the conference. after earning the Freshman of the Week in Jan. of 2024.
Mizzou is becoming a staple in the SEC Specialist of the Week slot, as the team has won four out of the past five honors. Head coach Shannon Welker's team is one of just three schools in conference history to ever have a Specialist of the Week four times in the same season.
As a team, MU is on a roll at making history this season. The Tigers are now one of three schools to achieve the top mark in multiple events this season, as Helen Hu grabbed a 10.000 on the balance beam earlier in the year. Adding to that history, MU's National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 49.375 on the floor ranks fifth, which is Mizzou's highest first-week NQS ranking in any event in the history of the Road to Nationals poll. As of now, Griffin is the No. 28-ranked gymnast on the event in 2025.
Up next - Griffin and the Tigers will host No. 11 Georgia at the Hearnes Center on Friday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m.
